5 Ways to

Make Better Questioners

Questioning helps us learn, explore the unknown,

and adapt to change.

That makes it a most precious “app” today, in a world where

everything is changing and

so much is unknown.

And yet, we don’t seem to value questioning. In our workplaces

and in our classrooms

it is the answers we reward—and questions

are barely tolerated.

To change that is easier said than done.

But here are some

suggestions on how to encourage more questioning

in the classroom and

in life beyond the classroom,

where we’re really going to need it.

Questioning can be scary, an admission to the world

that you don’t know the answer.

Create an environment where questioning becomes a strength, where it is welcome and desired.

One activity to kick it off: Have groups

“questionstorm” an issue— no answers allowed!

Questioners are the ones breaking new ground in

music, movies, and the arts.

They’re the explorers, the mavericks, the rebels.

They’re the explorers, the mavericks, the rebels.

How cool is that?

Share their stories. Show where questioning

took them.

Let kids tap into their imaginations and innate

question-asking skills.

Make inquiry an engaging part of any challenge.

“Can you turn that statement into a

question?”

“Can you open your closed questions and close your

open ones?”

“Can you use ‘the 5 whys’ to get to the root of a problem (like why do kids stop asking questions)?”

Make grappling with a question & sharing it with others a rewarding process.

Praise and celebrate the questions that are

asked—even the off-beat, crazy ones.

Turn questioning into a habit.

Observe the familiar in fresh ways. Be willing to be considered “naïve.” Question assumptions.

Make a great question an ongoing project,

a report, or an original creation of some kind.

Discuss how questioning is used and what

was learned.

If you’re a teacher, ask yourself

How might I encourage more questioning

in the classroom?

How might I instill the habit of inquiry

in my students?

Knowing the answers may help them in school

Because…

but knowing how to question

but knowing how to question

will help them in life.  

Read more on the power of questioning in our lives.

AMoreBeautifulQuestion.com

Read more on the power of questioning in our lives.

AMoreBeautifulQuestion.com

RightQuestion.org

Read more on the power of questioning in our lives.

AMoreBeautifulQuestion.com

RightQuestion.org

Edutopia bit.ly/BetterQuestioners